Back to Our First Love

In the second and subsequent chapters of the last book in the Bible, the apostle John writes of the revelation of Jesus Christ (the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ) by way of a letter to each one of seven churches.

To the church in Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-7), after greeting them with prophetic unction and conveying the divine affirmation of their deeds, hard work and perseverance, enduring hardships for the name of the Lord, he writes the following:

“Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.” (Revelation 2:4)

Could it be, I wonder, that in the midst of the busyness of our work, even when seeking to follow Jesus Christ, we at times lose track of the very reason for our being in this place and doing what we are called to do?

In the due course of our lives, we may at times find ourselves yearning to once again for the first time (re)discover the essence of our true identity—even as it may yet be being formed, still in the process of becoming the one we are meant to be, ultimately in the presence of the divine One Who created and continues to nurture our growth.

It may be a helpful exercise for us to attempt to sift through the noise clouding our surroundings. To make our way through the fog and cacophony of the world around us and pray for God to clear the air, part the heavens, and shine the light upon the path before us with renewed vision to take the next step with confidence.

Have we unwittingly or otherwise forsaken our first love? Did we allow the myriad tapestry of thought, the curious cadre of culled concerns, the ambiguities of ambivalence and ambition, and the awaited analyses of all that we are being bombarded with now into the second decade of this new millennium to distract us from the very core of what it means to be who we are in Christ?

The current, confusing state of our ecclesiastical deliberations appear to be causing much consternation for many now grappling with whatever it is that we are supposed to be discerning as the Lord’s leading for our unique, respective journeys. This is not a time to sit back, wait and relax. Like the apostle relaying the revelation, I hear the Lord calling us to hearken back to our very first love in and for Him.

So what is it for you and me that would take us back again to falling in love with the Lord for the very first time? What may God have each of us (re)consider for the sake of the call of the Lord upon our lives to be lived for His glory?

Thomas Merton writes:

“Fidelity to grace in my life is fidelity to simplicity, rejecting ambition and analysis and elaborate thought, or even elaborate concern… It is certainly true that what is needed is to get back to the ‘original face’ and drop all the piled-up garments of thought that do not fit me and are not ‘mine’—but to take only what is nameless.”

He discovered that in his experience, he needed to “get rid” of the “fluff”. To cut out the cobwebs crowding the environment of his life in order to make way and space for the true nature of his calling. He goes on saying:

“I have been absurdly burdened since the beginning of the year with the illusions of ‘great responsibility’ and of a task to be done. Actually, whatever work is to be done is God’s work and not mine, and I will not help matters, only hinder them, by too much care.”

Is it possible to care too much about things which turn out to be not anywhere or anyway near as important as the central, personal relationship of love we have with the Lord our God and Savior?

Don’t let your love for the Lord die “unknowingly”. Seek God first once again, beloved. Let us do whatever it takes to surrender and submit ourselves to the sovereign One Who calls us to himself anew.